As everyone knows, Los Angeles is on fire. The Los Angeles Times announced Thursday that the “Station Fire” started as a result of arson. According to that article, the fire has burned about 144,000 acres of the Angeles National Forest. It is the largest fire in L.A. County history. In addition to killing two firefighters (their truck plummeted 800 feet down a mountain), it has burned three others and destroyed 64 homes.
For those of us that do not live on the West Coast of the States, it is hard to imagine the magnitude of these fires. Just to give you an idea, this fire is 226 square miles. On Friday, Yahoo news announced that 42% of the fire was contained.
It is fascinating that the arson detectives can pinpoint the origin of the fire and assess all the clues to work backwards and hopefully determine the exact way the fire was started. According to the Yahoo article, “Clues can come from burned trees and grasses, where the amount of burned foliage can show the direction and speed a fire was moving. Investigators search for the remains of whatever started the fire: a charred match or cigarette butt, a piece of metal from a car or part of a power cable.”
Below is a chilling time-lapse video showing the intensity of this fire. For those of us who are unfamiliar with the grandiose power of a fire like this, this video provides an itty-bitty taste of what it looks like in Los Angeles.
Our hearts go out to all the people, pets and wildlife who have lost their homes or been displaced because of this terrible tragedy. We will keep you in our prayers.
To see some incredibly intense photos taken throughout this event, click here.
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